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Sunday, 29 September 2013

Hello! Sorry I've been a bit incommunicado recently but since getting back from Paris things have been hectic at work! I've not had a chance to stop, let alone blog!

So one thing I've been trying to do is clear out a bit of space and raise a bit of cash towards spending in New York! Mr Candy and I found an awesome deal and are going to be heading to the Big City at the end of January. I am SO excited.

So this means I've had a good rummage around in my wardrobe and ended up being super shocked at the amount of clothing I've got that I've worn once or even less.

I love clothes and fashion but I'm a bit curvier than most so I have a range of sizes from 12 up to 16. Take a look, if there's anything you want to ask drop me a tweet or email me on fluffycandyuk@gmail.com.

Postage is through MyHermes (so you'll get a tracking number) and I'll be dispatching on a Saturday and will be £5.20 per parcel, makeup will be £3 and through Royal Mail.

Payment will be via Paypal (and please select Gift so we can avoid pesky fees :)) and sorry, I can't ship internationally at the moment :)

I will accept BACS as well, please contact me by email or by DM on Twitter to arrange xxx

Friday, 20 September 2013

Everybody, at one point or another, has had something happen with their body that they cannot control.For many people their teenage years are a nightmare plagued by acne, greasy hair or having a brace.I was really lucky as a teenager not to have any of these problems very badly. I had the odd break out and, as you're probably aware I've had my teeth woes as well.My problem was far more irritating, in the literal sense of the word.

Tuesday, 17 September 2013

So, I've been running the blog now for a few weeks. The comments and support I've had in this time has been AMAZING and I cannot believe how far it's come in such a short space of time.

I've made no secret this is something I love doing and something I really want to take to the next level but I need your help to do this!

I've put together a quick, ten question, reader survey to get your honest feedback about the site and what I've been posting. Let me know what you think and I can then make it more relevant to your interests and your likes!

Friday, 13 September 2013

It's FRIDAY! Thank goodness. Just another four hours till I am free and the
weekend is all mine! I've been thinking over the last couple of days about blog posts and then,
whilst rooting around in my bag, I'm always carrying something that could be of
interest.

So plucked from the depths of my (very messy) Superdry bag are two items
I've been carrying about for a while.

The first item I've been looking at is the Body Shop's Hemp Lip
Conditioner. Their hemp range whilst amuses the teenager "That has a big
weed leaf on it" side of me is actually designed for those with really dry
skin.

Body Shop Hemp Lip Conditioner - £4

Body Shop Hemp Lip Conditioner - £4 - In its full glory!

This came as part of a set with one of their body butters (very
moisturising but stinks), a massive tube of hand cream (I've barely made a dent
into into entire 10 months I have owned it) and also a foot cream (which is
actually very good, albeit in a teeny weeny pot that barely would cover my
feet!).

First impressions are that it looks like any other lip balm; it's brown,
green and grey and could easily be any number of lip balms. It also has a hemp
leaf on it which makes me look slightly suspicious when bringing it out in
public.

Scent wise, there is a vague smell there. Although I'm not keen on the
scent on any of these products they do smell more like rope than anything
illegal which is a bonus! Application is pretty standard and goes on well but,
as it's for VERY dry skin I find it really greasy.

I've always struggled wearing lip balms. Like lip-gloss I feel like they
just "sit" on my lips and don't do anything. This one is no
different. I feel like I have rubbed olive oil or butter into my lips. They may
be hydrated but I feel like I could fry an egg on them!

As this was part of a set I probably wouldn't have picked this up myself. I
do suffer a bit with dry, flaky lips but I don't think my skin is anywhere dry
enough for this to be functional. My two favourite lip balms at present are
Carmex (Menthol or Cherry - £2.69 from Boots) and Soap & Glory’s Smooch
Operator (Coconut and Mint! - £5 from Boots)

The cost of the set was £22 at the time and looking at the site now a similar
set is available for £16 but without this lip balm... in fact I don't even
think they sell it now. This probably makes this entire piece redundant but I'm
sure that it's still sold somewhere in the world and in the stores :) The lip
balm itself was £4.

The second item I’ve been dragging around with myself for a long time is
Avon Cosmetics Far Away Bella. I’ve got this in a big bottle (still wrapped
actually!), this travel size and also a body cream (again, unopened).

The other items haven’t been opened, not because I don’t like it, but
actually because this travel size is lasting SO long. I use it almost every day
as my “work” perfume and find that a couple of squirts throughout the day will suffice.

Avon's Far Away Bella - Eau Du Parfum - Travel Size - 100ml £13

Avon describes it on their website as “A free-spirited adventure awaits, with juicy
Clementine from Italy and blooming magnolia flower from China, finished with
intriguing Tonka bean from Brazil.”

Now,
I don’t know much about perfume, but I know what I like. I love that it’s
really floral and fruity without being to mature for me. The cost of it wasn't very expensive, just £8 for all three items but considering this I have been
really impressed. In fact it’s only £6.50 now which makes it even better!

It’s
a very summery scent so I’m not sure how well it will transition with me into
the autumn season but in terms of being handy it’s great. I always get
complimented on it and I love the ease of the size of the bottle. Even if I
haven’t got as big a bag with me I can slot it into my sunglasses case and be
on my way.

Downsides?
I guess as a cheaper perfume the scent doesn’t last as long as something more
high-end. I am a massive perfume fiend and have so many bottles on the go all
at once however I like to keep some (Dior Addict and Miss Dior are my two
favourites) for special occasions. However with the £8 price tag in mind and
the fact when I order anything I’m helping a local self employed person always
leaves me feeling happy!

Wednesday, 11 September 2013

The one thing I've noticed from speaking to other bloggers and reading other sites is that the main drawback of beauty and fashion blogging is the cost.

KACHING!

Every week new products are launched, new styles become on trend, the latest gadget comes out (Case in point yesterday Apple released the iPhone 5S and 5C. Do I need it? No. Do I want one? Of course!)

Despite being a real life grown up now, with a job, a mortgage and some money to spend I, like many others, cannot justify spending loads of money each week and it got me thinking.

How many things, in my make-up collection and wardrobe, were potentially overlooked when they came out?

What is Collection Wednesday?

So this is where Collection Wednesday begins. Every Wednesday I'll delve into my collection for things that float my boat, question why I ever purchased them or are just a little bit ...mehhhhhh, I like it but I don't love it!

Of course if get a new release or anything new I will no doubt shout about it but let us give a bit of loving for the old friends we currently own that are still there after the launch dies down.

This week's stars are...Pores No More.... more cement than miracle cure

Dr Brandt's - Pores No More - Pore Refiner with Hint Of Tine - £33.15

I wanted to like this so much. I got given a tube by my hairdresser/wedding make up artist and she swore by it. The colour wasn't quite right and although the coverage was amazing initally it looked like someone has taken a trowel and slapped it on. The worst bit is when I had a bit of a tan and thought I'd pull it for another go I pumped it on the back of my hand and it just clumped and went an almost, peely skin consistency (see image below!)

Dr Brandt had dried right up :(

For £33.15 I wasn't expecting miracles but DO NOT LIKE.HOWEVER this is just my personal opinion and lots of people I know love the stuff. The Pore Vacuum is really good as well. Available at FeelUnique.comI LIKE it but I don't LOVE it

Urban Decay Primer Potion - £15

I remember when this primer was first released and it was AMAZING, every blogger swore by it and every vlogger used it in their how to's. Now I don't hate it but I just don't think it's the best. For £15 I had the original bottle and there is still quite a bit left, this is due to a couple of design flaws and thus why the packaging changed. Added to the fact the packing peels off everywhere and gets all over your face. Personally I find it useful but no more useful than using a concealer or a MAC paint pot. More often than not as well a lot of the shadows I use don't need a base (I like vivids! What can I say? :))Available at DebenhamsBest eyeshadow pencils I have ever used!

Urban Decay - 24/7 Shadow Pencils - £12.60

I love vivid colours. It's probably why I don't wear make-up to work, I can't get away with neon pink eyeshadow in a Thursday morning meeting! These pencils are amazing and no matter what look I go for these are brought out again and again.

I bought one originally for Bestival a few years ago where I was rocking a Katy Perry costume and I picked up Clash which is a vibrant blue glitter reminiscent of felt tipping the sea in a picture when you were a kid. This stuff would not budge, which at a festival was amazing. I could wander along my merry way and not worry.

Shortly after I purchased Narc (a metallic khaki green with glitter) and Mercury (Metallic silver with grey tones) and they are so versatile. They can be worn on their own or provide enough base for any number of dramatic looks by working other colours into the crease and brow bone. I know when I put them on as well I don't need to worry about fall out either.

Only downsides are that they are so hard to shift you'll have trouble shifting without waterproof make-up remover and a wire brush, there are too many for me to buy all of them and also putting eyeliner on top can be quite tricky as well. Apart from that ,along with MAC shadows these are in my top 5. They are available at Debenhams.

Yay! Giveaway time. I wanted to do this when I hit 100 but since I hit it I've had even more!The premise is simple, I'm doing well and I want to share the love so in honour of my first 100 (ish) Twitter Followers I am giving one lucky reader the chance to win a MAC eyeshadow of their choice.The competition launches today and ends on the 30th September where one winner will be selected to win the eyeshadow of their dreams.Maybe you fancy a pot of Tilt? Or if duochrome is not your thing maybe a little bit of Shroom? Whatever your colour preferences as long as it's in the permanent collection then you can win it!Just follow the instructions below and get yourself in with a chance. The winner will be announced on the 1st October on my Twitter and this blog page.

Tuesday, 10 September 2013

I've been nominated for a Liebster Award!!! How exciting. Big thanks to Mary over at Strike A Pose for the nomination! The Liebster Award is a way to give new bloggers with less than 200 followers to gain more recognition, help their blogs grow and let their readers know more about them. The Liebster Award is a really great way of sharing and discovering new blogs and bloggers.There are 11 questions and then you give 11 facts about yourself. Then you set 11 questions for those you nominate!

Here are the questions I was given!

If you were stuck on a desert island what three things would you take with you?

My birthday (28th August) because it's in the summer, it's my birthday and it's around the Bank Holiday so all my friends are about!

Which fashion icon inspires your style the most?

As mentioned in a previous post is has to be to Gwen Stefani. She embodies everything that I love!

If you had to, which TV show would you go on?

Catchphrase (if it's still about!) I always thought it was SO easy when I was at home and I could win money.

What’s your most embarrassing moment?

When I was 12 I went on the French exchange and got my eyelid stuck in a zipper. Yeah... that was fun.

What inspired your blog and the name you chose for your blog?

Fluffy Candy UK was my email address and username when I was a teenager. As I mention in my about me page, rather than being embarrassed of it I'm embracing it as a big part of who I am and how I came to be on the Internet.

Which 3 people would you invite to a dinner party?

Russel Brand and Stephen Fry for intelligent conversation and amusement and probably Kate Adie the war reporter, I bet she has some stories to tell!

Whats your favourite song to dance to in front of people?

Joy Division - Love Will Tear Us Apart. One of the most beautiful songs ever written and good times with my best friend dancing about in dingy clubs to it.

Whats your favourite song to dance to when no ones watching!?

The Cure - Pictures of You. It's a proper swishy swooshy song and has a lot of meaning for me so I tend to get a bit emotional when it comes on too.

If you could only shop in one clothes shop for the rest of your life, where would it be?

Easy River Island. Everything in there just fits so well!11Facts About me!1. I have a French Bulldog called Boris2. I have been married for 10 months3. I am half French Canadian4. I speak fluent French... when I'm drunk5. I've been learning to drive for nearly 5 years6. I'm allergic to apples7. I once interviewed Example in a little cafe in London before he was famous8. I prefer Pizza Express to Nandos9. I don't understand eyebrow pencil but use it all the time10. Some of my front teeth are fake (different post, a different time!)11. There is a 17 year age gap between my brother and sister with me. Now for My Questions to you!

Monday, 9 September 2013

Slightly different tack today guys. As I mentioned in a previous post I've been blogging on Fluffy Candy for a full week now and, as far as first weeks go, it's been fantastic.So each Monday, around lunchtime, I'm going to be doing a sort of self development, my journey post called My Monday Pause. Hopefully with a bit of advice relevant for you and also a bit of reflection on my journey as a blogger.Starting OverThe one thing that has been really apparent this very first week is how much I've missed writing. Like REALLY missed writing.When I was a kid all I wanted to do was be a journalist, every subject I took at school was media related, every A-Level, even my degree was in journalism. However, whether a mixture of lack of money (Living in London was SO expensive) or just the wrong timing it seemed like it was never meant to be.Looking back now I'm sort of glad this happened, it's utterly frustrating to think that if I could have pushed on a little bit more I would have had it happen however, the path that I took not only led me to meet Mr Candy but also gave me some EXTREMELY valuable skills.Moving To The Dark SideI got into sales. Yep, I'm a sales person. It seemed when I first went for it like easy money and there were SO many jobs available too (there's a good reason for that! It's bloody hard!)My first foray was at a teeny weeny office in Finchley, London, selling adverts in some magazines. This was literally the sketchiest office in the world. There was one computer between 5 people and people had made up their own names to sell ads. I wasn't there for very long (they kept forgetting to pay me) and in that time I sold adverts to Nokia and John Frieda and also got a bottle of Frangelico for coming in early and doing the vacuuming(!)After having done my degree I assumed if I went and worked in sales at a magazine, which was an easyish job to get, that one day I would magically side step into being a journalist or writer. This is not the case. In fact it made it IMPOSSIBLE because whenever I applied for anything the advert sales side of things was deemed more valuable than my writing. Because at the end of the day, as much a writers and editors wax lyrical about informing consumers and business, the prizes and prestige that come along with an amazingly written piece. Magazines, TV, newspapers, websites are all businesses. More often than not the bottom line comes first even if you want the content to be key.The Wrong Kind Of CowAfter my short stint at the strangest magazine publisher ever I then spent the next few years flitting between being a top performer at an ailing local newspaper and then dabbling into the world of b2b publishing (namely in the public sector).I loved both jobs and hated them equally all at once. I loved being able to sell based on features and suggest features to the editorial guys. I hated the features coming out badly, editorial saying one thing and then doing another and then the occasional advertiser bashing that came out. Explaining to Mr Smith the butcher why his advert promoting British Beef is next to a 1,000 word rant about the evils of eating meat was never a fun job.One of the worst instances of this was when I ran an advert for a local beef supplier (I sense a theme here?) who was appearing at a local food festival and thus had bought space in our official guide for the day. This supplier had a particular breed of cow that he specialised in. I got our art department to make up the advert and source all the pictures. Sent him the copy to proof which I got no reply from. In our contracts (something which I would never do myself!) was a clause that when sent it was deemed as "accepted" unless they got in contact. As deadline drew closer the guy didn't get in touch and so the ad ran as was.On the Monday, after the food festival, I got a screaming call saying that I had ruined his business, he was laughed at by all the other butchers and I had made him the laughing stock of the local area.All because the picture of the cow the art department had sourced had the horns pointing the wrong way.Nightmare.What's This Got To Do With Blogging?Good question. The main theme from all of these events (though I'd label them incidents personally!) was a slightly incomplete feeling. I always felt I was either in the right place but doing the wrong thing or being creative and being able to express myself but in the totally wrong subject area (There is only so much excitement I can give about police pension plans....)I had the skills but I needed an outlet that brings them all together.... and here I am a quarter life crisis, one Blogger and Twitter account and eight days later.This is the beginning of something I've wanted to do for a long time. Having had the jobs I've done, the people I've met and the skills I've picked up along the way, these have taken to me to this point now and the question is where to go next.I have a plan in mind and what I "envision" I'd like to be. The question is now simply getting there.Just by reading this post and making a comment below you'll be helping me so much towards this dream. And the great thing is, success breed success! What I learn along the way I hope to be able to pass on to others in my position. As things develop and evolve I want to able to not only make an opportunity for myself but for others as well, whether it be advice on approaching potential advertisers, finding your own "voice" down to plain and simple supportive advice. If you have any questions, comments or what to learn a bit more please drop me a line either in the comments below or through my Contact Page. I'm really hot on my emails and will email you back pretty much straightaway!

Sunday, 8 September 2013

Happy Sunday everybody! Hope everybody has had a great weekend so far.

So today I'm putting together a "Lust List". This is a list of five things I really, really want to buy but haven't been able to justify to myself and my credit card.

The one thing that drives me nuts the older I get is that you always end up having more money, none of which you can spend.

Mr Candy and I bought a house two years ago and, whilst being very fortunate to have been able to do this in our 20s there is always SOMETHING needing doing. In fact Mr Candy has just spent the last 5 months doing out our bathroom by hand. It's now lovely but no fancy dinners, no new make-up, no new shoes or anything for a while.

Is there anything you really want to get but haven't been able to justify it? Leave me a comment below and I'll see if I convince you to take the plunge!

I LOVE these hi-tops. They are just so cute and look so comfy all at once. I'm usually a Converse girl when it comes to trainers but I just really like this brand. They only launched their website in the UK on Friday and I love all of it already. But, I can't justify another pair of trainers so quickly after buying so many clothes recently!

Illamasqua - Hydra Veil - £27

I've not actually ever bought anything from Illamasqua but its a brand I've wanted to try for ages. I've heard amazing things about their Hydra Veil which is part primer, part moisturiser, part amazing. The cost isn't too bad but for a brand I've never tried its a big plunge for me.

Tatty Devine Head In The Clouds Collar Necklace - £150

I love Tatty Devine jewellery but this is one of the most ME things that I have ever seen on their site. However at an eye watering £150 got Perspex jewellery unless it majority comes down in price I cannot justify it :(

Wild fox - First Date Jumper - £99

I've always admired Wildfox stuff and its extremely wearable for compared to other similar brands of its price. However the cost isn't the issue this time but the size. I'm not a small girl and although Wildfox do do stuff in my size it sells out super quick. The only size left on asos.com of this jumper is xs and s. boo!

YSL - Poupre Intouchables -£24

The packaging is solo pretty and the colour and the formula I've heard raved about but every time I try and purchase something holds me back. Maybe if I could buy ALL the colours I'd do it but I'm always scared that one of the other colours would suit me better. Might pick some up in Paris perhaps?

Saturday, 7 September 2013

Now normally on Beauty Blogs you are able to access a full range of "How To" tutorials, recommendations of fantastic products and tips and tricks how to make the most of your beauty collection.This is NOT one of these posts.For the last few weeks a few of the super glam girls at work have been rocking stick on nails. As much as I love make-up and beauty, in my day-to-day life I can be a bit lax and although I always have polished nails and a slick of lippy I don't pay as much attention as I probably could do.Just to give you a bit of background, I've always been slightly nervy of stick on nails. When I was 13 my friend Katie and I would buy those horrific 99p glue on nails you'd get in cheapy shops. We'd struggle to get them on and then try and paint them and it'd always end up a mess. Then I'd somehow get glue on my face and glue my eyes shut. This is pretty much the same scenario if I try and put false eyelashes on now.So, the ease of these stick on nails really appealed to me. I haven't got a steady hand do nail art and sometimes the same old colours can get a bit boring (though I'm constantly buying nail polish so should be able to mix it up a bit!)So last night I was in Asda with Mr Candy and I spotted this press on manicure in pink, glittery zebra print. I'd like to think if unicorns existed they would have exotic pink, glittery unizebra cousins but that's beside the point.They were £7.98 (weird price right?) and claim to last a week.I purchased them and thought, this couldn't be too hard? Right?Wrong...

Broadway Nails - Impress - Medium Length - £7.98 Asda

To be honest I don't think it's the product's fault. They seem very well made, were initially quite simple to apply. It was more my complete uselessness that made it go wrong. Here is a list of the mistakes I made.

Mistake Number 1

Getting Too Bloody Excited

Squee! I'm going to have beautiful nails..

I'm a normal person. I see pink, I see glitter and it all becomes a bit of a haze. The minute we got home I HAD to put them on. Not unload the groceries, not check on the dog, nope! I had to put these little babies on straightaway.

Mistake Number 2

Guesstimating the Size

So the pack comes with 24 nails in 12 different sizes. What I SHOULD have done is sat down, at the dining room table or in my office and laid them all out. Sized them against my fingers and selected the most accurate ones. Then when I was happy, wash my hands and dry them as directed, use the enclosed "Prep Pad" and then carefully put them on. I just pulled them out the packet and willy nilly started sticking them on which led to mistake number 3.....

Mistake Number 3

Down Means Up and Up Means Down

I stuck the bloody things on upside down! I painstakingly stuck every sucker on and then read the packaging and realised that I'd fit the cuticle end to my tips. Cue facepalm where I poked myself in the eye as they were talon like at this point.

Mistake Number 4

"Ahhh, I'll trim them in the morning"

Let me fend off those wild beasties for you..

As previously mentioned these are medium length. It truly felt like a mix between being an eagle and on the cast of TOWIE. If they made fingertip knives to fend off wild creatures these would do very well. Basically by the time I had corrected my mistake it was late and couldn't find the scissors. I went to bed and three pinged off, not after Mr Candy told me to quite firmly to "keep away" with my "vile talons"

Mistake Number 5

Improper Equipment

Beautifully Butchered

So Saturday morning I woke up. Reapplied the three I lost with two amazing matches and one horrific index finger choice. I have apparently got very strange index fingers because I think I ended up with a thumb one. I then proceeded to hunt high and low for nail scissors and a nail file.

I found the nail file easily enough but the scissors were nowhere to be seen. I had a driving lesson fast approaching and I didn't think the talon length was going to help. I needed to chop them. So trusty kitchen scissors to the rescue which then resulted in car crash hands. They looked AWFUL. I filed them as best I could but they were beyond saving.

Mistake Number 6

Believing The Box

Missing - One index finger nail. Last seen in a driving instructor's crotch area

Half way round a busy roundabout, whilst whacking on the indicator on my lesson my index nail pinged off into my driving instructors lap. It was a really awkward moment and then a seagull flew into the front window. It was ok but I do wonder if the shininess of the nails temporarily blinded him.

I felt after this I couldn't ask to delve my hand into his crotch area in an attempt to reapply it. They had done too much damage already.

So, in conclusion, as a product I think they are great. Knowing what I know now I'd be tempted to give them another go but take the time and attention that they deserved and also understand their limitations.

That and I've now purchased some new nail scissors, just in case.

I am now minus one index nail and my right hand looks like my manicurist has been taking lessons on cutting out from a four year old with safety scissors. However after paying £7.98 I refuse to remove the others until a full week, purely on principal......

Thursday, 5 September 2013

We all have one person who we idolise. Over the years I have loved many a celebrity and tried to emulate them through the way they dress, their make-up, even down to what they eat and drink.

However there is one celebrity who I have been, for want of a better word obsessed about from the age of about 12. She embodies so much from being a polite and respectable woman, a rocking musician holding her own in a genre dominated by guitar based groups of men, a style icon and an advocate of fashion and beauty.

That woman is Gwen Stefani.

Starting off with a little band called No Doubt, from the 80s onward Gwen has always had her own style, her own presence and her own signature look. Everybody recognises her famous platinum blonde locks and bright red lips.

In the early 2000s Gwen even launched her own solo music career and not one, but two fashion lines, L.A.M.B and Harajuku Lovers.

L.A.M.B was what you would consider "high-end" and retailed in places like Harvey Nichols in the UK and Nordstrom in the US. I literally would get my student loan, go out and blow £150 on a hoodie I loved her so much. Harajuku Lovers was a little bit cheaper and a little bit cuter. Sometimes, if you're lucky some turns up in TK Maxx on occasion and I've grabbed myself a couple of tees and hoodies along the way.

Gwen performing at Wembley Arena on her Sweet Escape Tour

GET THE LOOK

Gwen's famous red lipstick has many "dupes" and I've tried them all. MAC's Russian Red, Urban Decay's Tart Lip Gunk (sadly discontinued) however the one lipstick always sited as being her favourite is L'Oreal's Color Riche in True Red - £4.95
In fact, Gwen even was the face of L'Oreal for a while.

Lamb Women's Bindi Special Occasion Heels - £63-£233.47 - Gwen even branched out into footwear. Click the shoe above to see some of the styles available.L.A.M.B Perfume - 50mls - £12.14 - I wear this pretty much as my everday scent. It's a lovely mix of floral tones, including Sweet Pea and is really fresh and spring-like. If you want to take a listen to where all this started from pick up one of No Doubt's Albums and see for yourself the enigma that is Gwen Stefani!

Tuesday, 3 September 2013

So I'm a few days into blogging and in this short, but sweet, amount of time so far I've seen some great beauty blogs out there.I've been avidly reading, getting tips and feeling my way round and after seeing Gracie Darling's Little Owl Beauty blog I spotted she had a skincare tag. Now as an avid YouTube watcher I've always wanted to do a tag! There are so many to pick from; The Boyfriend Tag, The Rainbow Tag but, this being mainly about beauty and all, I thought why not start at the very beginning of beauty with skincare!So, feel free to pick up the tag yourself and enjoy reading my answers. I'm always looking out for new tips and tricks so leave a comment below!

Describe your skincare routine in five words..

Varied, simple, legacied, hopeful and lax

What's your skin type?

I've had several different counters give me several different versions. Some say oily, some say dry and some say combination.

If I were to draw you a map I would say relatively normal with a nose and chin that suffer from blackeads. In addition my friend says I have "The weirdest shaped pores I've ever seen" I usually whack a pore strip on though to get rid of these. Biore Pore Strips - £7.50

What's your favourite skincare product?

Not necessarily a product as such but nothing makes my skin better than a damned good holiday. Getting away from it all, the pollution, the stress, add in a sunny climate, swimming in the sea and a better diet and I remain spot free. Failing that I can never go wrong with Clinique's 7-Day Scrub - £18.50. It's pricey but I really love the smell and the granules feel so good on tired skin.

Top blemish zapper?

My mum, when I was a teenager, said don't waste your time on spot zappers and miracle creams and would get me to dab perfume (Yes! PERFUME) onto my spots. Till this day I still do, I think the alcohol in the perfume soaks up the gunk or something but that and a good face steam always seems to do the trick for me! I'm probably giving super bad advice right now!

Face wipes, yay or nay?

I love face wipes. I have hoards of them and whilst they will never replace cleansing, toning and moisturising. Sometimes though my skin gets a bit aggravated with the fussing and they do the trick. Ideal for removing a heavy night out's make up though.

Toner, yay or nay?

Toner is great. I tend to use Clinique's 3 Step - (Varied Prices) (in 2) and the toner, as much as I hate it, really reveals all the gunk and dirt on my face. It's half fascinating to use and half horrifying!

High end skincare or high end makeup?

High end make up. Skin is pretty resilient and I like to think that in all the time us humans have been about we've found one way or another to look after our skin. Whether it's through diet, good hygiene, even things like banana and oatmeal face masks it's pretty easy to even out. Just look at Lush Cosmetics, they've built their entire business around using things in nature to care for your skin and body.

Creating colours and textures of what you then put on your canvas (I mean face!) is a little more scientific and if you are going to put it on, it may as well be very good quality!

What's the most unusual skincare product you've tried?

Well apart from the perfume I mentioned previously, probably any of Lush's products. There are things in them like kaoline, chocolate and vodka! Ocean Salt which I mentioned in my August favourites smells like margaritas. I know of some people who've had Vampire Facials, Bull Semen and all sort of weird stuff put on their faces but unless they are some sort of miracle cure (or free :)) then I'll stick to my slightly middle of the road stuff!

You're in a French pharmacy and can only pick one item - what is it?

This is the question that realllly intrigued me about this skin tag. I'm a bit of a Francophile, in fact I'm off for a weekend in Paris in 2 weeks (EXCITED!) and I've been thinking about what I want to pick up whilst I'm over there.I've heard great things about the facial sprays but. at the same time, we probably need those maybe two weeks out of fifty two here... so one thing I've heard good things about is Cattier Masque L'Argile Rose - £4.40 which I'll try and give a whirl whilst I'm over there.

Tell us your top skincare tip.

I would normally say drink loads of water, as this is what we are all nagged to do but instead I would suggest don't fuss too much with your skin. It's good to try out new things and improve trouble areas but if you chop and change too much your skin will end up not knowing what's hitting it and so will your purse. In addition remember what works now or doesn't work may change over time. In the last couple of years my skin has changed so drastically products that were once my Holy Grails I can no longer use, whereas stuff that brought me out in a rash is now a staple!Thanks so much for reading and I tag you! Let me know if you do the tag as I'd love to see your answers!